114 TRAPPING IN NEBRASKA 1866-7. 
patch camp, Castor Fiber understood how to circumvent q 
the trapper’s arts. Now and then a kitten, or a two 
year old, lose their caution and their hide buta big skin | 
stretched on a grape vine, was a rarity about the camp. 
One windy morning, we each started out to attend 
seperate lines. About eleven o’clock as I reached my 
line’s end and wasreturning toward camp, a great cloud 
of black smoke rose up suddenly in the direction Buffalo 
a 
had taken. When first noticed it was many miles away 
but the wind then blowing at a velocity of about forty 
miles an hour, soon brought it sweeping down among 
the high and dry grass along the bottom lands. The- 
rank underbrush then caught fire, and extending to the © 
large whitened cottonwoods, that had been deadened by 
previous fires, they were quickly licked up by the hot 
flames. The air became stifling and filled with black, 
falling ashes and burnt particles. 
I had neglected to provide a necessary precaution in 
eS 
Pe Se ee 
such an emergency, namely, a few matches to protect 
oneself by backfiring; so but one alternative was left—as — 
the appalling mass came veering toward me—and that i 
was to make speed fcr the river and stand a partial im- 
mersion until the danger was over. 
After the main sweep of fire had passed, I started for 
our cabin, and arrived at the place to find that the dom- 
icile had disappeared and a few charred logs were 
smouldering on its site. Everything was destroyed. 
The steel springs of the traps were overheated and ruin- 
ed. The furs were all destroyed, even those that were 
drying in hoops, and hanging high up in limbs of trees. 
In truth our company possessions were now limited to 
the few traps fortunately setting out along the water line. 
